The Braves are a team without many flaws. They are as strong as any club in most areas, from a lineup full of stars to a deep pitching staff headed by two aces.
The margins are important, though. A team can always improve. In Atlanta’s case, the backup infielder spot seemed like a clear area the Braves could upgrade.
The Braves on Sunday acquired Nicky Lopez from the Kansas City Royals in exchange for left-hander Taylor Hearn. Lopez seems to be a large improvement over Charlie Culberson, the club’s current backup infielder.
The Braves haven’t yet announced a move to get Lopez on their active roster. It would be surprising if Culberson were not the corresponding move.
The Braves can continue working on improving their roster until the trade deadline at 6 p.m. Tuesday.
On Sunday, Braves president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos added a nice piece. Lopez raises the Braves’ floor because he’s an upgrade over Culberson.
Lopez is a left-handed bat who can play all over the infield. He’s a good baserunner. He’s seen as someone who possesses good makeup – the baseball word for character. Lopez is also under team control through the 2025 season.
This season, Lopez has hit .213 with a .604 OPS over 160 at-bats. In his career, he’s a .248 hitter with a .628 OPS.
Lopez, who debuted in 2019, has primarily played shortstop, second base and third base. And this season, he’s played in the outfield twice and at first base twice. He’s only committed one error this season. In 1,062 2/3 innings in the field over his career, he’s only made 12 errors.
Lopez has 40 career stolen bases. He’s been caught stealing twice.
In 2021, Lopez – Kansas City’s fifth-round pick in 2016 – was the club’s everyday shortstop. He hit .300 with a .744 OPS that season. He hit two home runs and drove in 43 runs. He stole 22 bases.
Lopez probably won’t play much. The Braves’ starters play every day. But if someone suffers an injury, Lopez probably would fill the void better than Culberson.
The other side of a trade is this: What did a team give up?
In this case, the Braves traded away Hearn, who might’ve had some upside in addition to his minor-league options. Pitching depth is important, but the Braves don’t appear to lose much here.
In his Braves debut, Hearn allowed four runs. He only recorded one out. You cannot solely judge him on one outing. However, he possesses a 5.26 career ERA. Perhaps the Royals (or another team) will unlock his potential, but the Braves have better starting pitching depth options, like AJ Smith-Shawver, Michael Soroka and Jared Shuster.
Last Monday, the Braves acquired Hearn and right-handed reliever Pierce Johnson. Hearn spent less than a week in the organization, while Johnson is a member of the bullpen who could play a large role the rest of the way.
After acquiring Johnson and Hearn, Anthopoulos made it clear that he felt Atlanta could improve in certain areas. Of course, he didn’t reveal those. But he hinted at the club remaining active until the deadline to ensure it could best position its roster for this final stretch.
To this point, teams have engaged in several large trades. The Mets traded away Max Scherzer. The Angels acquired Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez. There have been several other newsworthy trades.
The Braves probably don’t need to make any flashy moves. At 67-36, they hold MLB’s best record. Their lineup is set. They know they main starting pitchers. They could stand to add another reliever, but their roster is already loaded.
But teams can always improve.
On Sunday, the Braves upgraded their backup infielder spot by acquiring Lopez.
